Next Steps and Puzzling Info!

     This is the culmination of 11 months of hard work! Doesn't it all look very official?? All of our paperwork now has pretty gold seals on it which means our dossier is complete and has been sent to our adoption agency for their review.  Please pray that I did everything correctly!  I would hate to have any more setbacks at this point!   We are grateful to everyone who helped us get all these documents together. It was truly a joint effort.

     Our agency will go through everything and make sure that all the documents are in order just the way Poland likes it.  Unless you've made a dossier like this, you cannot understand the many many details that make up this packet.  I was tempted to give up along the way, I was frustrated by the bureaucracy, I was defeated by the tediousness.  But Kevin and I knew that at the end every paper cut would be worth it.  I also felt a little sad because I knew that others along this same path had given up before they reached the goal, due to cost, or being overwhelmed, or many other factors.  There are so many orphans that need mommies and daddies to give them a home.  Kevin and I are honored, with God's help, to be able to say at the end of this process that there are two less orphans in the world.

   Will you help us reach that goal? I have purchased a 1000 piece puzzle of a beautiful lake in Poland.  It looks like this:

 

This is Morskie Oko Lake, in Tatras, Poland.  The name "Morskie Oko" translates to "Eye of the Sea". According to an old legend, the lake was connected to the sea via an underground passage.  The puzzle itself is made by Castorland Puzzles which is located in Cracow Poland.   

    We are giving you an opportunity to join us and help an orphan by buying a puzzle piece for $5.00!  We will then write your name on the back of the puzzle. When all the pieces are sold we will assemble the puzzle, frame it, and hang it in our daughters' room.  You may buy as many pieces as you like.   We are using a site called youcaring.com to run the fundraiser.  This is the link here.  Thanks for your support!

 

 

The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.”  Romans 8:15

 

 

 



 

Fingerprints and more

     This week's part of our adventure involved going to Indianapolis to visit the Department of Immigration and have our Biometric Fingerprints taken.  It sounds very James Bond-ish but in fact was pretty unspectacular.  You may be wondering why we haven't had this done yet, but in the world of adoption, there are certain steps that have to be followed in order.  The biometric fingerprints are part of getting an Immigration clearance document.  We can't apply for that document until our Home Study is done.  We had to send them a copy and then they send us an appointment to get our fingerprints taken.  The immigration office in Indy was smaller than I expected, but the process didn't take very long once we got there.  They put your fingers on a piece of glass, kind of like a copier, and then scan them.   Very simple, no ink involved! The Department of Homeland Security then decides that we are okay to adopt and in a few weeks we should get the final form for our dossier.

Our dossier is almost done now!  This is very exciting because this is what we have been working on all year.  Collecting documents and documents and more documents.  Then getting all of these documents notarized, and then all authenticated in Indy.  I have most of our documents authenticated and I am just waiting on a few more to finish it up.  The immigration document that comes in a few weeks will be the last piece.   We will then send our completed dossier to our adoption agency and from there it goes to Poland.

A few tips for anyone who is thinking of adopting internationally:  
1.  Get your passport now.  You will need it right away.  You will need your passport number and a copy of your passport for the paperwork.
2.  Get about 4 copies of your State issued birth certificate.  It must be state issued, not from the county (at least in Indiana).
3. Get at lease 5 copies of your marriage license.

You will use these documents in a lot of places.  It seemed like every time I turned around someone was asking for these documents!

A lot of people have been asking how long it takes once our information is in Poland.  I'm really not sure how long it will be.  It takes a few months to translate our dossier and then find a match for us.  It could take a few months or longer.  We have been praying that the right children are available to us in God's timing.  Please join us in praying that our daughters will come home soon!

In the meantime, Kevin and I have had a great summer!  We were very busy and it flew by fast!  We visited the Indy Zoo, Mounds State Park, and spent some time with my family on the west coast of Michigan.  It was great to have a break from the normal routine!

Home Study Approved!

     It has been awhile since I have updated you on our progress!  We have had a busy summer and it's not over yet!  Kevin and I have been enjoying the warm weather and doing some traveling.  We have been visiting with Kevin's family,  we spent a getaway weekend in Indy around our anniversary, and we are spending some time in Michigan with my family in a few weeks. The summer flies by too fast and it will be football season before we know it.
   First an update on the rummage sale.  It went really well!  Everyone was so generous and we even received donated items from people that we didn't know.  By the time we got to the actual sale days our garage was so full that I could barely get in it and at one point I wasn't sure if I would be able to close the garage door. We spent two hot summer days wheeling and dealing and sold almost everything.  I was exhausted by the time it was over and happy to see the garage floor again.  Our friends and family really helped us make it a success! It was a lot of work, but totally worth it. But I don't think I want to do it again any time soon.  Maybe by this time next year, I will have forgotten how much my feet hurt.
   Secondly, I received our approved home study today!  After a lot of back and forth revisions from our home study agency and our placement agency, we finally have the official copies.   This means that we can really move forward in this process.  One copy goes off to the government for immigration forms and other copies go to the state government for authentication with some of our other documents.  When we receive this back from the state, our dossier will be complete and will go off to Poland.  One step closer to bringing our girls home!
   At this point we have been actively pursuing adoption for almost 9 months.  We have relied on the support of our family and friends so much and will continue to do so.  Thanks for being there for us.  We couldn't do this without you. 

We're having a Rummage Sale!

Come one, come all! 

Thanks to the generous donations of our friends and family,

 we have lots of quality items to sell!

     Our garage is almost full!  We have been collecting items for the last few weeks to raise money to help defray the enormous adoption costs.  I have been vigorously selling shippable items on eBay and other larger items on Craigslist.   But there are lots of things that will sell better in person, so we are now to the point that we are ready to have a super rummage sale.  We have clothes, furniture, baby items, toys, bikes, golf clubs, and much, much, more.  We will have all of these items for sale at our house on Friday June 14th and Saturday June 15th.  ALL of the proceeds will go to our adoption fund.  We will also have a representative selling 31 Bags at our sale and she is donating half of her profits to our fund! If you are in the Muncie area, please stop out and visit!
      If you would like to donate items, we are still taking anything you are willing to give.  Thanks to everyone who has already donated so selflessly.  We are blessed to know so many wonderful people!  It just confirms what I have known all along about the big hearted people of Indiana!
    On the paperwork front, we are still waiting for our Home Study to be finalized.  Our report is currently at our placing agency receiving approval. We should be hearing something from them in the next few days.   After that, we send a bunch of documents off to Indianapolis to be authenticated and we apply for an immigration document.  After that, our paperwork goes off to Poland where we are eventually matched with a waiting child or two!
    Thanks for your prayers as we continue through this process. Please pray that the Rummage Sale goes well and that I keep my sanity in the next few weeks!





  

Home Study, Classes, and more

  

   I can finally say that spring has come to Indiana!  I know it has been a while since I posted, but there has been a lot going on and I have been outside enjoying the sunshine!    We had our home study visit a few weeks ago.  If you are not familiar with the process, part of the home study consists of collecting paperwork and writing an autobiography, and the other part is having a social worker come to your home for a visit.  We prepared for the visit by cleaning the house from top to bottom.  We needed to do some spring cleaning anyway. I wish my house could stay that nice all the time! 
     When the social worker came, she interviewed Kevin and I together. She asked questions about our families, why we are adopting, our history together, our views on child rearing, etc.  She then interviewed us separately about our personal histories.  After we passed that (whew!), we showed her around the house.  Our daughters' room is still a guest room for now.  It didn't need to be set up as a child's room for the home study, they just need to see the room to make sure it is a safe environment. She requested a few more documents that we just needed to make copies of and that was it.  The whole thing didn't take very long and we were happy with how it turned out.  The social worker writes up a report then and sends it to our home study agency and our placing agency.  I haven't heard yet if they have received it, but I'm sure I will hear something soon.
   As part of the adoption process, each country requires so much training for adoptive parents.  Adopted children, especially those that have been in orphanages, may require different parenting techniques.  These classes help equip parents to deal with any challenges they may face.  Poland only requires 10 hours of training and although Kevin and I had already met that requirement we wanted to attend the 4th and last class of the series that our first agency teaches. We are always glad to attend these classes and meet other adoptive parents because we share advice and valuable support.  Part of this class was about whether or not you should rename your child which has its pros and cons because your child is probably already responding to their name.  Kevin and I talked about how we are hoping to Americanize our child's Polish name so that it will be similar, but not the same. We are not sure how close we will get since the Polish language has so many different characters than our American alphabet.
    

Once we get a copy of our home study, I can start working on applying for grants.  Until then, our Ebay/Craigslist fundraiser is going really well!  I cannot thank enough all of our friends who have donated items for me to sell.  We have been so blessed by your support!  As you are spring cleaning this year, we are always taking donations.  I am continually putting things on Ebay and larger items on Craigslist.  We will also be having a rummage sale this summer for any extra items.  Items that sell well on Ebay include electronics, cell phones, video consoles and games, and kids items. Thanks for thinking of us!
    
We have also had a very generous offer from our friend Beth Kresja, a hairstylist at The Salon and Spa here in Muncie. She is donating $5 for every service to our adoption fund.  So if you need a new hairdo, call Beth at 744-8788!
  








 God is still moving and we are feeling His blessing. Thanks again to all of our family and friends. We couldn't do this without your support!
    

Learn to do good.

Seek justice.

Help the oppressed.

Defend the cause of orphans.

Fight for the rights of widows.

Isaiah 1:17

 

 

Easy Opportunity to Help!

     I've recently caught the ebay bug.  I know it's been going around for quite some time, but I never thought I would get it.  I was cleaning out our spare room the other day and came across some items that I didn't use anymore but didn't want to just throw away.  So I listed them on ebay and they sold!  I couldn't believe it!  So now I'm looking around and trying to figure out what else we can get rid of that might be worth something to someone else.  My husband even sacrificed his old Xbox to the cause. But I'm running out of things to sell.
     Here's where you come in. Have you wanted to help support our international adoption but not sure how you can help?  Ebay can be a great fundraising tool!  All you have to do is find items in your house that you are no longer using, but might be useful to someone else.  Items that sell well include:  digital cameras, camcorders, ipods or mp3 players, game consoles, small kitchen appliances, hand tools, e-readers, and electronic toys.  While you are spring cleaning this year, will you please put some of these things aside?  I will pick them up and sell them on ebay and all the money will go towards bringing our daughters home.  Just let Kevin or I know or you can contact us at beachadoption at gmail dot com.  Thanks for your help!

Please be praying for us this week because our home study is Saturday!  We are very excited to finally get this part done.  A lot of things can't be finished until the home study is completed, so this will move us farther along.  Please pray that everything goes smoothly.  Thanks!

Home Study and Dossier

     We are finally ready to have our home study!  When we switched agencies there were some details that needed to be worked out before we could complete this part of the process.  But now everything is sorted out and we are ready to move on.  The home study consists partly of collecting documents (which we have already done) and partly of a home visit from a social worker.  We are hoping to get this scheduled with her soon.  As with everything in this process, this is an important step that needs to be completed before we can move on.
     I also received instructions on filling out our dossier.  This is a formal presentation of our documents that will be given to the judge in Poland when we go there to adopt our daughters.  It is a lengthy processes of authenticating all of the documents we have collected.  There are some things I have been able to compile but everything else has to wait until the home study is complete.  I was a little overwhelmed when I received this latest round of work.  I have some times when I don't feel like doing this at all, and other times when I wish I could just finish it all at once.  I am working through it and Kevin is helping where he can.
     In between all of this, we are working on some fundraising ideas.  I had some luck selling a musical instrument on eBay so I have scoured the house for other items to sell.  I think I will try a few small items and see how it goes.  My husband is currently cleaning up his Xbox to sacrifice to the cause.  He even volunteered to play it to make sure it works properly...We have also considered hosting a 5k among other things.  Although it is hard to think about a 5k when there is currently up to a foot of snow headed our way.  What happened to spring?
     I have also tried to buy some things off of eBay but have not had any success.  One of the things I was bidding on was a Rosetta Stone Polish language course.  The Polish language is not something that will be easy to master so I thought I would get a head start and at least learn enough to help us get around when we are there.  I was hoping to save some money by finding it used, but I will just have to keep looking,  I have some time before I will need it.
     I know this will all be worth it someday!   I keep reminding myself that we are getting closer with each document!

Please pray that the home study goes smoothly, that the papers won't overwhelm me, and that our children will be safe in our arms soon.

Thank you!